LONDON -- A 2005 European survey has revealed that 81% of ADSL subscribers are interested in receiving triple play service from one provider.

The survey was conducted by market research firm InsightExpress, on behalf of SupportSoft, Inc. (Nasdaq: SPRT - News), a leading provider of Real-Time Service Management (RTSM(TM)) software, in which ADSL subscribers in France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Spain and the UK were interviewed about the customer service they receive from their broadband service provider (1) and the impact it has on future decisions. The survey results are projectable across the entire population of ADSL subscribers in these countries with a margin of error of +/- 5.4%. Aside from price and availability, 36% said the most compelling reason to receive voice, video and data services from one company is that it would be "more convenient overall."

86% of those surveyed said they believe that customer service would stay the same or improve if they received voice, video and data services from one provider, with 17% believing it will "improve significantly." Meeting this expectation can present a problem for service providers since the deployment of voice and video services can be an order of magnitude more difficult than for traditional broadband services. Despite expectations of improved service, subscribers still have concerns about IP-based voice and video services:

While this research indicates that interest for triple play services from a single provider is high, the degree to which their customers are satisfied with their current broadband service can play a key role in determining whether or not they will decide to add more services from the same provider, or decide to switch providers altogether. A great customer experience should start with installation of their broadband service, yet 43% of those surveyed experienced problems during the set-up of their broadband connection. In addition, 48% required further support in the past year, with inability to access the Internet, service outages and a modem or router problem ranked as the top three reasons.

The desire to spend less time on-hold when customers phone about a problem was the choice selected most often for a broadband service improvement that would benefit respondents most (57%). Perhaps because of the time spent on-hold, Europeans are eager to receive a choice of self-service assistance options, giving them the chance to "help themselves":

SupportSoft Inc.